Stop and think: Why did you sign up to learn about Product Management?
Episode #1 of the course Intro to Product Management by Ellen Chisa
Do you want to be in charge of a team?
Do you feel like a generalist who can’t really focus in on one specialty?
Do you want to have your hands in everything?
Do you like to stay “high-level”?
Are you interested in switching into tech but don’t want to learn anything technical?
If the answer to any of those is “yes,” you may wish to reevaluate your choice. Product Managers influence without authority. They have a high degree of specialty in a discipline that isn’t often taught: Product Management. They don’t actually get to do the work of every discipline, but they step in anywhere that is necessary.
The last in particular is most important. Product Managers need to have deep respect for each of the disciplines they’re interested in. To be the best you can be at Product Management, you’ll need to want to be a PM. You’ll also need to be at least a little curious about what it’s like to be a customer service rep, a developer, a designer, and any other role you may work with closely.
So what are some good reasons to learn about Product Management?
• If you work with Product Managers and want to understand what they’re doing. Especially if you’d like to understand what makes a Product Manager particularly good or see ways you might be able to help a less effective PM switch techniques.
• If you’re interested in shifting into Product Management from an adjacent discipline and want to know which of your responsibilities will stay the same and which will change.
• If you shifted into Product Management by mistake and are looking for some quick frameworks to help you evaluate.
• If you’re an entrepreneur, haven’t been a Product Manager, and know you won’t be hiring one for a while. This will help give you some ways of thinking to release the first version of your product.
• And, in my mind, the best reason—because you’re curious. Product Management has been widely discussed recently, and it’s always fun to know what’s going on.
Recommended book
Share with friends